Surgery on the human knee or knee joint nearly always requires rebuilding of muscular strength in the knee and/or in connective tissue surrounding the knee. Various methods and apparatus have been designed to facilitate rehabilitation of knee function. These typically include knee exercises designed to restore knee strength to previous or at least acceptable levels.
Most afflictions of the knee joint are exacerbated by weak quadriceps and hamstring muscles as the pateint begins to favor the painful joint. This many times initiates a vicious cycle of increased pain and increased muscle weakness leading to progressive joint instability. The quadriceps and hamstrings are the dynamic stabilizers of the knee joint and must be kept at maximum strength for optimal knee joint function.
Typical rehabilitative methods and programs extend over a period of time, usually measured in months, to achieve the desired level of recaptured knee strength. Measurements of knee strength are periodically taken to determine progress or completion of the required rehabilitation regimen. It has, therefore, become necessary to provide apparatus capable of measuring the relative restored knee joint strength to determine when it is possible or desirable to discontinue joint muscle strength rehabilitation.